Review - Western Force 17 - 69 British & Irish Lions

It’s sometimes difficult to make an occasion out of an event when a few of the big draw cards are no longer going to be on show.  Think of Bon Jovi’s latest tour without lead guitarist Richie Sambora,  Take That reforming without Robbie Williams or a Game of Thrones episode without gratuitous nudity – to many people, these kind of omissions are serious enough to stop you from viewing or attending the said show or event.  Or at least they may suck some of your expectations out before they’ve even started.  Which is why, perhaps, the crowd in Perth on Wednesday, although appreciative, were a tiny bit subdued.  That and the fact that most of them would have to be going to work the next day.

The announcement from coach Michael Foley that he would be playing a mix and match side of Australian international veterans and blokes who had never turned out in Super Rugby before was met with a mixture of empathy and anger.  Due to the fact that the Western Force are playing the Waratahs on Sunday, a weaker team than normal was fielded against the Lions, and there was a feeling that this would affect the quality of the game.  Perhaps, but just because a team is shorn of stars doesn’t mean you won’t have a quality event – one of most dramatic finishes I’ve seen in recent years was a Leicester Tigers (effectively 3^rd XV) taking on the second string touring South African side 3 years ago.  However, the fear remained that this would be another test of uncertain significance of various Test candidates and, if the Force weren’t careful, they may suffer a similar fate to the Western Australia side who faced the tourists in 2001.

The 119-point-barrier may never have been in danger of being breached in this game, but there must have been a few hearts in mouths of the Force fans as they saw their weakened side leave a gap as wide as Matt Stevens’ waist for winger Tommy Bowe to ghost through after 2 minutes and, although the winger ran out of steam surprisingly quickly, Jamie Heaslip took the ball on and the hosts were penalised for offside.  Leigh Halfpenny took on kicking duties and nudged the Lions into a 3 point lead.

The Force got a scrum straight back in the Lions 22 off the kick off following an accidental offside from Heaslip, but a combination of powerful scrummaging and jackal-like defensive work from Tom Croft saw the Lions turn the ball over and take play back into the hosts half – and within 5 minutes they had their first reward.  Johnny Sexton may not be first choice kicker but he showed everyone why he is first choice fly half, showing and going with an audacious dummy that left Richard Brown wafting at thin air and the Lions 10 strutting around under the posts.

Then followed a frustrating period for the Lions, where resilient Force defence kept them out by the skin of their teeth.  Firstly, Manu Tuilagi burst through the middle only to be denied by a full-stretch collar grab from lock Toby Lynn (perhaps the Lions shirts for the next tour could go without collars) and then Conor Murray dropped the ball in a promising position after another good Lions scrum.  Rory Best made matters worse by overthrowing his lineout and handing easy territory back to the Perth-based side following a great kick from Sam Norton-Knight and chase from Corey Brown.  From there, the underdogs earned themselves a penalty which Brett Sheehan slotted, earning the biggest cheer of the day so far.

It was as close as the Force were to come though, as the Lions turned up the heat for the last 10 minutes of the half.  Captain Brian O’Driscoll was the first to dive over following good hands from Tuilagi and a great offload from George North, before Croft scored in the exact same spot out wide on the left after nice hands Alun Wyn Jones and Sean O’Brien.  Halfpenny added two beautiful touchline conversions, along with another penalty in between, to leave the halftime score at 27 – 3 to the Lions, but it was the unlikely figure of Cian Healy who was providing the biggest talking points, firstly for an alleged nibble on the arm of Brett Sheehan (you know how props love their food) and then secondly for suffering a nasty looking ankle injury that may have ruled him out of the tour.

Following the resumption, though, it was back to business for the Lions, who were now dominant in all facets of play despite some passionate and aggressive defence from the Force.  The Western Australia side had managed to irritate the Lions by smartly slowing the ball down in the first half but they had no answer here, as Sexton threw the wide ball out to the unmarked Jamie Heaslip – who was smashing through tackles with a relish we haven’t seen in years – and the Irish number 8 dotted down on the right.

Halfpenny made the conversion look easy, and perhaps that was a feeling that pervaded down through the rest of the men in red as a series of unenforced turnovers gave the Force a foothold in the Lions 22.  Captain Matt Hodgson took a quick tap from a penalty and carried powerfully to allow number 8 Richard Brown to drive through Ian Evans for a try and, despite not having the invention in attack, the Force had shown real tenacity in defence and a score was richly deserved.

The joy didn’t last for long, however, as Mako Vunipola – as explosive as a Die Hard movie since his introduction for Healy – barrelled his way over from close range on the right, before Tommy Bowe repeated the trick with Force centre Ed Stubbs in the sin bin for not rolling away in the tackle.  Once again, Halfpenny showed off his imperious form with the boot to add two stunning conversions.

But once again, as soon as the Lions felt they were settled, the Force came straight back at them.  Once again it was captain Matt Hodgson who was making the initial inroads and leading the charge up close to the Lions’ line, before substitute Lachlan McCaffrey charged through Johnny Sexton to go over for his side’s second score, with Sheehan adding another conversion. 

The resistance had been admirable for a side that had been cobbled together from blokes who wouldn’t normally start for the Force, but tired bodies began to allow the tourists to show their class in the last 15 minutes.  Tuilagi busted through the centres before laying on a delightful offload for O’Driscoll to score his second, capping off a great performance by the Irishman and a promising debut for the Tuilagi-O’Driscoll axis. A Halfpenny conversion inevitably followed, before substitute Owen Farrell glided through a huge gap to touch down and irritate his critics, leaving Geoff Parling to bundle over late on – a deserved try following an impressive cameo from the “Sexiest Beard in the World”.

The final score, with Halfpenny’s 100% conversion rate, was 17 – 69 to the tourists.  Which, those of you Lions supporters who are attempting to learn how to sledge may like to know, is more points than the amount of runs the Aussies managed to score in their cricket match against India the other day.  Of course, like the cricket team though, the Aussies will be back.  This battle’s not over – it’s only just begun.

Western Force Player Ratings

 Sam Christie – 6 – Mopped up well at the back but couldn’t get into the line to attack

Dane Haylett-Petty – 7 – Not a day for him to show his offensive skills but kept track of North well with a couple of great tackles
Ed Stubbs – 6 – Another to enthusiastically hurl himself into the opposition in a bid to upset the Lions’ momentum.  Shame about the yellow card though.
Chris Tuatara-Morrison – 6 – Not a bad debut at all, considering who he was up against.  Sometimes got hammered off tackles but always got up to atone for it
Corey Brown – 6 – Er...wheels.  I gave him a mark just for looking lightning quick when chasing a kick in the first half.  No chance to show it off with the ball in hand, sadly.
Sam Norton-Knight – 8 – We’re used to seeing him get bullied physically in Super Rugby and in Pro 12 but this time he was really fired up and put in a strong defensive display
Brett Sheehan – 5 – Didn’t quite produce the display to back up what was coming out of his gob but tussled well enough, despite throwing some dodgy passes
Salesi Manu – 5 – Was on the back foot in the scrum but, to his credit, managed to just hold on long enough to allow the ball come out
James Hilterbrand – 5 – A workhorse around the park but the lineout had a few wobbles
Salesi Ma'afu – 6 – The big prop carried pretty well but also seemed to constantly be on the cusp of folding at scrum time
Toby Lynn – 7 – Some sterling defensive work was a real highlight, including a try-saver on Tuilagi
Phoenix Battye – 6 – Worked his socks off but always part of a pack in retreat
Angus Cottrell – 6 – Worked well with his 2 backrow partners at slowing the ball down – often illegally – and getting away with it.
Matt Hodgson – 8 – A good captain’s display.  Set up the first try for his team and was constantly a thorn in the tourists’ side.
Richard Brown – 7 – A well taken score but also surprisingly fell off a fair few tackles.

Subs

Hugh Roach – No time to make an impact
Sione Kolo – 5 – It was always going to be almost impossible for the prop to reverse fortunes in the scrum
Tim Metcher – No time to make an impact
Ben Matwijow – No time to make an impact
Lachlan McCaffrey – 7 – Scoring a try against the Lions is something he’ll cherish forever
Alby Mathewson – No time to make an impact
Nick Haining – 5 – Couldn’t get his hands on the ball to make the impact he would have wanted.
Junior Rasolea – No time to make an impact

 

British & Irish Lions Player Ratings

Leigh Halfpenny – 7 – A first rate kicking display...but I think he needs to show more in attack.  We saw one great little dance but not much else, and he was made to look slow by Corey Brown in the first half
Tommy Bowe – 7 – Industrious is the perfect word for Bowe.  He always hits beautiful lines but has he lost several yards of pace?  Well taken score though.
Brian O'Driscoll (capt) – 8 – The master of being in the right place at the right time showed he’s not ready to hand his Test spot over yet.  Two very well taken scores.
Manu Tuilagi – 7 – Had 3 men on him on all times it seemed, but played a smart game – distributing well enough and waiting for his opportunities.  A couple of delightful link ups with O’Driscoll would have caught the eye.
George North – 6 – Always seemed on the cusp of breaking free and running over or around everyone, but it just didn’t quite happen for the big winger.
Jonny Sexton – 8 – So, so smooth.  Lovely vision and array of skills was typified by a trademark show and go for his try and a perfect long pass for his country-mate, Jamie Heaslip
Conor Murray – 5 – Not the best day at the office, butchering a couple of decent chances. Didn’t seem particularly speedy in his delivery either.
Cian Healy – 6 – A shame to see the big Irish powerhouse leave the field with potentially a tour-threatening injury.  Was scrummaging well beforehand.
Rory Best – 5 – Not brilliant, with a couple of overthrows at key times almost proving costly to the team – and potentially to his test claims
Dan Cole – 7 – Scrummaged and rucked well throughout, and for one heart-stopping moment there was a genuine fear he may score a try, as he received the ball 2 metres out.  Not to be, though.
Alun Wyn Jones – 7 – Such a solid performance until the sinbin.  The big Welshman was a powerful presence in the loose and on the carry.
Ian Evans – 6 – Failed to have the impact of some of his second row colleagues but never stopped going.
Tom Croft – 7 – A well taken try and some sterling work in defence were particularly noticeable.  Managed to get himself knocked out again, though.
Sean O'Brien – 8 – Strong display for the big flanker.  With a phenomenal workrate and ability to bounce tackles, he was one of the chief sources of go forward ball.  
Jamie Heaslip – 9 – After a pants season, he brings it out the bag.  I’m not sure where his terminator-playing-rugby impression has come from, but it’s looking good.  Gallop after gallop made inroads into the Force defence.  Man of the Match.

Subs

Tom Youngs – 6 – Solid on the throw and his usual bundle of energy around the park

Mako Vunipola – 8 – Stunning impact for a replacement prop, making a huge amount of metres with the ball in hand and maintaining dominance in the scrum as well.  Made Healy’s loss seem not quite as critical.
Matt Stevens – Not enough time to have an impact
Geoff Parling – 7 – Another to make a strong impression.  A flying catch, a couple of powerful drives and a try showed that the bearded wonder is not just hear to make up the numbers.
Toby Faletau – Not enough time to have an impact
Ben Youngs – 6 – Picked up the speed of the game and the Lions looked more threatening as a result Owen Farrell – 7 – Would have silenced a few critics with a couple of lovely passes and a well taken try
Sean Maitland – Not enough time to have an impact